Effect of Fungicide on Pollen Foraging by Honeybees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Cranberry Differs by Fungicide Type.

Honeybees (Apis mellifera Linnaeus) (Hymenoptera: Apidae) play a major role in the pollination of cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon; Ericaceae). However, fungicide applications during cranberry bloom may affect bees foraging behavior. This research reports the amount of cranberry and noncranberry pollen brought back to hives immediately before and after two types of fungicide applications. The amount of cranberry pollen decreased while the amount of noncranberry pollen increased following a fungicide application. However, this relationship differed depending on the type of fungicide applied. Understanding how different fungicides specifically impact bee behavior is essential to minimizing bee exposure to potentially harmful chemicals.

Terrestrial Invertebrate Arsenic Accumulation Associated With an Arsenic Hyperaccumulating Fern, Pteris vittata (Polypodiales: Pteridaceae).

Arsenic (As) can play an important role in the contamination of soils, waters, and air. The toxicity of As to most organisms is well established, but little is known about the interactions between environmental As and terrestrial invertebrates and the fate of As through trophic levels. Pteris vittata L. (Polypodiales: Pteridaceae), a fern that hyperaccumulates arsenic, serves as a potential mechanism to facilitate interactions between environmental arsenic and other biota. We compared invertebrate arsenic concentrations (hereafter as [As]) and bioaccumulation factors associated with soil and fern [As] to elucidate relationships between invertebrate and environmental As exposure. We collected invertebrates in pitfall traps from field sites associated with P. vittata, and identified them to order for whole body arsenic analysis and subsequently family for classification into functional feeding groups. We found that overall [As] in invertebrates increased with soil [As], but not with fern [As]. The absence of a relationship between fern [As] and invertebrate [As] may indicate invertebrates are avoiding the fern. Individual taxonomic groups significantly differed in whole body [As], and individual taxa also varied in their relationship between whole body [As] relative to soil and fern [As]. Overall invertebrate abundance decreased as invertebrate [As] load increased but varied across taxa. One particular herbivore, Callopistria floridensis (Florida fern caterpillar), associated with relatively low environmental As exposure contained over 4,000 mg kg-1 As. Our results show that As bioaccumulates into higher trophic levels and invertebrate body [As] covary with exposure to naturally occurring environmental [As] associated with P. vittata.

Myeloperoxidase and oncogene expression in GM-CSF induced bone marrow differentiation.

DNA synthesis, morphology, specific RNA accumulation and rates of specific protein synthesis in GM-CSF stimulated bone marrow progenitor cells were studied. DNA synthesis increased markedly for 64 hours and then gradually decreased to 5% maximal activity by 160 hours. Morphologic examination 40 to 64 hours after stimulation revealed an increasing proportion of immature myeloid cells. After this proliferative peak, cells differentiated into segmented neutrophils and monocytes/macrophages; only mature forms were present by 160 hours. Accumulation of mRNA for c-myb and c-myc was maximal at 40 hours just prior to maximal [3H]thymidine incorporation, while maximal accumulation of histone type 3 (H3) was coincident with maximal [3H]thymidine incorporation at 64 hours. As proliferation decreased and differentiation proceeded, levels of mRNA for c-myb and H3 decreased markedly, while levels of RNA for c-myc decreased gradually and remained elevated above day 0 levels. Levels of c-fos mRNA fluctuated slightly during the first 64 hours of culture and increased 13-fold by 160 hours when mature cells were present. Similarly, beta-2 microglobulin mRNA increased steadily to maximal levels at 112 to 160 hours which were 15-fold higher than day 0 levels. Myeloperoxidase (MPO) mRNA was present in maximal amounts at 40 to 64 hours after stimulation with GM-CSF as the number of immature myeloid cells peaked. Immunoprecipitation of MPO from pulse-labeled cell lysates demonstrated a 7-fold rise in synthetic rate of MPO of 64 hours and a 28-fold decline by 160 hours when only 5% immature myeloid cells were present. Thus, MPO protein synthesis closely follows MPO mRNA accumulation. Immunoprecipitation of lactoferrin, a marker of myeloid secondary granules, demonstrated a gradual 5-fold increase in synthetic rate as the cells matured. Taken together, these data show that maximal expression of the early myeloid differentiation enzyme myeloperoxidase in GM-CSF stimulated normal bone marrow cells occurs during peak proliferation of immature myeloid cells.